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Rediscovered in the late 1930s, the site of Old Fairfield Village was excavated early in the career of Wilfrid Jury, who was later responsible for excavating Sainte-Marie among the Hurons in Midland, Ontario. This exhibit investigates not only the recovery of historical artefacts, but also the process of archaeology as it existed 60 years ago, and its impact on a small community.
Jury was always a controversial archaeologist, and some examples of his field notes, maps and numerous photographs are presented. With each artefact, the lost village of Fairfield tells its story of the Delaware Christian Natives who came in 1792 from the Ohio valley with their Moravian missionaries. The Fairfield Excavations is also a snapshot of a rural community of the 1940s unearthing its rich history, rediscovering it again in a new century, and then winning national recognition and building a museum.
